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The purpose of this paper is to address two research questions: which are the key factors that stimulate entrepreneurs to invest in ecopreneurship, and how ecopreneurhsip contributes to environmental sustainability.

To answer these questions, a framework has been developed to identify the incentives that lead entrepreneurs to invest in firms in the ecopreneurship through institutional and resource-based thinking.

From a survey of 91 Greek firms from the green service sector, it is shown that some specific institutional and resource-based view factors play a critical role in green entrepreneurs’ decisions, as well as some certain environmental practices that are frequently used by entrepreneurs to address environmental issues.

First, the answer of the second research question through data collected by a questionnaire survey may be faced with skepticism by some authors, as it could be seen that entrepreneurs and managers of firms could have overstated their company's environmental activities. Second, although the sample selection of 91 firms is a representative sample (response rate 12.35 percent) of the total population of Greek green firms (761) and equal to other relative studies, a higher number of firms and a wider variety of green entrepreneurship ventures is necessary in future research.

The findings are useful for scholars, practitioners and policy makers since it provide information regarding the behavior of green entrepreneurs.

The paper analyze the types of green entrepreneurs in relation to the different features and strategies which are emerged from two theories, such as institutional and resource-based theory.

This paper reviews the literature available on sustainable entrepreneurship along with the terms used interchangeably (as the context demands) and explores the themes research have undertaken to explain the concept across multidisciplinary avenues. The purpose of this literature review is to determine the direction of research in the field of sustainable entrepreneurship. It also enables the author to find out the relevance with similar terminologies, i.e. green entrepreneurship, ecopreneurship, ecological entrepreneuship etc. Also, how various differentiating concepts under the guise of sustainable entrepreneurship contribute to the similar goals on organizational level.

Scopus and Web of Science databases are explored for research articles including term “sustainable entrepreneurship”. A list of 50 most cited articles is extracted from the results and analyzed for underlying themes and trends in current research. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) standard is used to systematically search articles from two databases and filtering for the most relevant manuscripts.

The categorization of research articles is conducted to understand the direction of research in this field and the emphasis on specific aspects. Themes identified are further elaborated into subcategories to get to the underlying theme of the research article. The research trend implicates the shift toward practical application and evaluation along with conceptual exploration and analysis which is inherent in any field of research.

The literature review in primarily conducted on two most referred databases, i.e. Scopus and Web of Science, as the search for term “sustainable entrepreneurship” yeilded most results in these databases. Also the methodology adopted focused on the most cited articles in the past two decades to extract the themes and subthemes. This allows the researcher to determine the trends and gaps in the current research.

This paper aims to examine the experiences of an ecopreneurial venture that was operating before, during and after the 2010-2011 series of earthquakes in Christchurch, New Zealand. The aim is to elucidate on the tension existing between an ecopreneur’s personal green values/ethics and his need to be resilient and do what was necessary to ensure his business’s survival, which was operating before, during and after an extreme event – the 2010-2011 series of earthquakes in Christchurch, New Zealand.

The data are gathered from a longitudinal case study of Just Organic Ltd (an organic fruit and vegetable delivery service) over a five-year period which covers time before and after the earthquakes. Data were gathered via two in-depth face-to-face interviews with the ecopreneur, along with a number of email and telephone follow-ups.

Findings indicate that an extreme event such as an earthquake will inhibit the green values of an ecopreneur as the ecopreneur works to ensure business survival. To continue to operate successfully, the ecopreneur developed a resilient and hardy nature and adapted operational processes to run in a more entrepreneurial fashion. It would seem that holding firmly to green values irrespective of a changed business environment is detrimental to business viability and survivability. The ecopreneur bounced forward, rather than bouncing back from the disaster.

The implications for research, policy makers and ecopreneurs and entrepreneurs in general are discussed. There are lessons to be learned from the experiences of the ecopreneur who is operating Just Organic Limited.

This paper is one of the few that has examined the impact the Christchurch earthquakes had on an existing eco-business. The longitudinal data enable a unique insight into the operational aspects of an eco-business before and after a series of earthquakes.

Ecopreneurs are those entrepreneurs who start for‐profit businesses with strong underlying green values and who sell green products or services. This is an emerging field where research is still in its infancy. Research has been called for to understand the factors that motivate these ecopreneurs to start businesses – and that is the focus of this study. The aim of this paper is to compare the findings with results of extant literature on entrepreneurial motivations.

This study comprises 14 in‐depth case studies of ecopreneurial companies in New Zealand in 2008. Participants were interviewed in a face‐to‐face, semi‐structured format. In total, 88 secondary sources such as media reports, industry statistics, and information from company web sites were also collected.

Ecopreneurs were motivated by five factors: their green values; earning a living; passion; being their own boss; and seeing a gap in the market. Ecopreneurs appear to have quite similar motivations to entrepreneurs in general, aside from their green motivations. They had lower level financial motivations than have been found in prior research on entrepreneurs. The ecopreneurs were primarily pulled into entrepreneurship, which bodes well for their ongoing success. The paper presents a number of contributions to both the ecopreneurship and entrepreneurship literatures.

The small sample is a potential limitation and the country context may also influence the findings.

This is one of the largest samples of ecopreneurs to date. Given the emerging nature of the field of ecopreneurship, this study's conclusions require further research and testing. A total of 11 such suggestions for future research are made.

The purpose of this paper is to examine some of the key contextual, personal development and research issues facing micro-ecopreneurs in the UK food industry.

Key literatures and definitions are examined concerning the role of an ecopreneur, as well as the nature of ecopreneurship. Contextual ideas are drawn from arguments concerning the triple bottom line, and economic versus social and ethical trade-offs, as well as a closer examination of the UK food industry and future trends.

The UK eco-enterprise market has been growing and dynamic. However, micro-ecopreneurs in the UK food sector are now faced with numerous trade-offs and challenges, not least in terms of educating consumers, overcoming difficult market situations, and gaining access to venture capital. In the absence of widespread data, there have been calls for further research to clarify fundamental conceptual questions, such as: What are the long-term sustainability trends for ecopreneurship in the UK food industry? How will ecopreneurs deliver high-quality produce alongside demands for cheaper and more processed foods, commonly found in many UK supermarkets? What motivations, personal development skills and managerial qualities are required from future micro-ecopreneurs for long-term success in a highly competitive sector?

The authors direct future researcher attention to the key managerial and personal development issues facing many small business ecopreneurs.

This commentary is intended to explore broad issues and ask pertinent questions, in light of the harsh economic realities in 2013, experienced by many smaller UK ecopreneurs.

This article explores value-based motivations to adopt ecological entrepreneurship (ecopreneurship) practices and investigates how intersections of social identities such as gender, religion and ethnicity influence these motivations.

The study uses primary data from field observations, social media analysis and semistructured in-depth interviews with 16 owner-managers of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Indonesian craft sector.

The findings show that self-enhancement, conservation and self-transcendence values motivated the entrepreneurs to adopt ecopreneurship practices. Furthermore, the intersections of identities also tended to influence the entrepreneurs' motivations to adopt ecopreneurship practices.

The sample was limited to the Indonesian craft sector. However, the study has furthered one’s understanding of how values motivate ecopreneurship behavior. Conservation values were added to the values known to influence proenvironmental behavior. Furthermore, Schwartz's value theory, strongly associated with Western, individualistic, culture is suggested to be adapted. In Asian – collectivist – cultures, the values driving the entrepreneur are often more community-oriented than individualistic.

This study recommends policymakers to create more inclusive policies to foster the acceleration of sustainable development by equitably including both genders and encourages them to promote local culture, which motivates entrepreneurs in the craft sector to adopt ecopreneurship practices.

The study contributes to the entrepreneurship literature, particularly to the fields of gender and ecopreneurship, by considering the intersections of identities of the ecopreneurs. A research agenda for ecological entrepreneurship and family business researchers is provided.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the influence of the green talent dividend on China’s economic growth and regional differences using a theoretical derivation of the Cobb–Douglas production function.

This study develops a measurement model with human capital based on Chinese inter-provincial panel data for 2001–2017, and analyzes the influences on economic growth of employees’ education level, per capita material capital, green labor participation rate and green jobs. The study explores the impact of the green talent dividend on regional economic growth for different regions.

Employees’ education level, per capita material capital, green labor participation rate and green jobs promote China’s economic growth. The dependency ratio hinders economic growth. The green labor participation rate impacts economic growth more than green jobs do. Furthermore, the scale of green talent in China and its dividend effect are regionally unbalanced. Therefore, to fully release the dividend of green talent, the green labor participation rate should be improved to promote the rational flow of talent among regions.

These findings shed light on the talent dividend, provide a theoretical basis for the formulation of relevant talent policies, and show that the demographic dividend can be transformed into the green talent dividend, which has practical significance for the sustainable development of China’s economy given its aging population.

This study provides a macro perspective on the green talent dividend’s impact on economic growth. The Cobb–Douglas production function in this study differs from the traditional micro perspective on green labor.

Public food procurement (PFP) plays an important role in establishing agri-food systems. The study explores local food system stakeholders' response to PFP interventions by addressing the question of how PFP transforms agri-food systems and how this new agri-food ecosystem is governed.

This article presents and discusses a unique case study of Jeonbuk, a rural province in South Korea, which successfully transformed its agri-food system into an ecosystem through its sustainability-oriented innovations (SOIs) among born ecopreneur farmers. This case not only offers insights into a novel way to create value chains through legislative, executive and judicial governance but also extends the body of knowledge on agri-food systems by introducing the concept of an agri-food ecosystem.

The findings indicate the importance of the ecosystem governance and knowledge exchange among internal and external ecosystem stakeholders. In particular, PFP institutions play a crucial role in facilitating the operation of public meal centers and cooperation among actors.

Taking an ecosystem lens to agri-food systems may offer agricultural cooperatives a wider perspective and better understanding of the governance structures necessary to successfully execute public interventions. Lastly, the Korean case differs from other developing countries, but its role model qualities could help to implement successful school meal programs elsewhere.

This paper reviewed and applied a conceptual framework aimed at identifying the role of PFP institutions in the value chain governance by studying a case study of a South Korean local school meal program. The study further extends the agricultural cooperatives research and contributes to a better understanding of the role of a municipality and an agri-food intermediary in the governance process involving producers and kitchens.

Using the Bennett (1991) and Berle (1991) publications as a historical picture of what were considered to be “best-practice” examples of ecopreneurial businesses in the 1990s allows a longitudinal assessment of the success and failure of such businesses almost two decades on. Tracking their evolution facilitates the consideration of emerging patterns in their development, such as what happened within certain industries, whether common patterns emerge in the role of the founder ecopreneurs and how successful different firms actually were.

This paper aims to examine the mechanism of how circular economy practices (CEP) and circular economy entrepreneurship (CEE) promote sustainable supply chain management (SCM) and facilitate sustainable performance (SP) for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the food value chain in emerging economy. In this context, this mechanism involves the mediating role of sustainable SCM in the relationship between CEP and SP. Simultaneously, it involves the moderating role of CEE in the link between CEP and sustainable SCM.

The paper follows a quantitative approach. Based on systematic literature review on the field, the nexus amongst the constructs were proposed. The Smart partial least square (PLS) version 3.3.2 was employed to analyze structural equation modeling (SEM) to investigate the relationships between constructs and latent variables. There were 457 valid responses obtained from the survey participants, those are managers at senior and middle levels. The data collected was then used for quantitative analysis and assessment.

The main finding of this study is twofold. First, it sheds light on how CEE associates in strengthening the influence of CEP on sustainable SCM. By this way, the better the CEE, the stronger the impact of the CEP on the sustainable SCM, leading to long-term sustainability. Second, it reveals how sustainable SCM mediates the link between CEP and SP. By this way, the better the CEP, the more the SCM is sustainable, ultimately leading to SP. This contribution is paramount because experimental research on this mechanism has not been intensively explored in the current literature.

The originality of this study is the provision of scientific knowledge and practical mechanisms for the introduction and application of CEP to business behaviors and practices in a real-world context that exists as a research gap in the current literature. In this respect, this study contributes to expanding the existing literature in the field by providing empirical evidence for the mechanism as stated. Furthermore, it provides a practical mechanism for SMEs in given context to enable them apply efficiently the circular economy perspective to their businesses to help them achieve SP. These contributions may be of interest to business practitioners, business leaders, academics and policymakers in the areas that are of their concerns.